A Case for God’s True Justice and a Call to Mission

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Something a little different today since I didn’t preach yesterday morning (our choir presented their excellent Christmas cantata instead). I recently heard about a small kerfuffle happening in the world of evangelical culture and theology. I was first alerted to it by a Facebook post from a church member. I don’t often pay very much attention to news stories I hear about on Facebook, though, so at first, I didn’t pay it any attention. But then, listening to a couple of different news podcasts from Christian sources I trust, I heard about it again and in more detail. Apparently, in a recent podcast episode with his son, Kirk Cameron espoused a heterodox theological view that has a fairly long historical pedigree called annihilationism. The basic thrust of the position is that one day God will annihilate—that is, blink out of existence—all of those who are in Hell. This view is framed as a better picture of the justice and mercy of God. Rather than making people suffer in Hell for eternity, God will mercifully end their suffering one day. They will simply cease to exist. When a seminary professor or anonymous pastor spouts off something like that, the world mostly ignores it. When a leading figure in the world of evangelical culture espouses it on a popular podcast, a great many more people pay attention. I don’t normally respond to things like this, but I actually wrote a paper on the subject explaining the whole debate as well as defending the historically orthodox position. This doesn’t have very much to do with the Advent season except that this is the fate Jesus came to save us from, but because the debate is hot, I thought I’d chip in my two cents. The paper is almost 20 years old, but my position hasn’t changed any in that time. This may not be for everybody, but some may find it either helpful or interesting or both. Because it is longer than usual, I’ve gone the extra mile and recorded the audio, so you can just listen to the paper if you would prefer. In any event, here you go, complete with a bibliography in case you really want to track down any of my sources.

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Songs of the Season

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“When the time came to completion, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Our culture doesn’t like to wait. We have become an instant society. Everywhere we go and in almost everything we do we are finding ways all the time to get or experience what we want faster than we already do. We could easily point to things like microwaves, of course, but how about shipping on packages? Have you experienced yet ordering something and having it delivered to your house in under 24 hours? Grocery shopping used to be a chore. Now you can sit on your couch (or at your desk), order everything you want, and on your way home pull into the pick up spot, hit a few buttons on your phone, and be driving home in a few minutes with what would have taken you an hour to pick up on your own. It’s almost like we don’t really believe anything is worth waiting for anymore. But there are some things we have to wait for. Life doesn’t cooperate otherwise. God doesn’t cooperate otherwise. And today’s song of the season is a reminder that some things are worth the wait.

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Advent Reflections: Isaiah 9:6-7

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“For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Grace is hard to find in our world. The world outside God’s kingdom doesn’t do grace. It’s all judgment and vengeance. The irony of this is that the world accuses God of this very thing. Yet while God surely does bring judgment when it is due, His first instinct is grace. We see this grace put most gloriously on display in the coming of Christ as a baby to live and die for our salvation. The arrival, or advent, of Jesus was something God started preparing us for long before the time finally came. The prophet Isaiah foretold His arrival more than once. Let’s take a look at one such prophecy.

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Advent Reflections: Psalm 139:7-12

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“Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I fly on the wings of the dawn and settle down on the western horizon, even there your hand will lead me; your right hand will hold on to me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light around me will be night’—even the darkness is not dark to you. The night shines like the day; darkness and light are alike to you.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

When the apostle Matthew was writing Jesus’ story, he began at the beginning. Writing for a Jewish background audience, he rooted Jesus in Jewish history, showing Him to be the Son of David as every Jew knew the Messiah would be. Then, he told the story of His birth. Narrating through Joseph’s experience, Matthew went out of his way to show that Jesus’ birth was the fulfillment of prophecy. Specifically, He fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy about a child born to a virgin who would be called Immanuel, which means “God is with us.” Jesus made it possible for the God who is everywhere in Spirit to be with us in relationship. Let’s celebrate the goodness of our God with David’s words today.

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Reflections on a Life Well Lived

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“His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You were faithful over a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Share your master’s joy.’” (CSB – Read the chapter)

This won’t be the next expected entry in our Advent journey. Some recent news has prompted a temporary change in direction.

All kinds of people come and go in your life. Most of them don’t make any kind of an impact on you, nor you on them. Some last a little longer. But there are a few who last. Even when you don’t see them often, they’re still there. The impact they have on you resonates all the way down to your soul. I’ve had a few of these folks over the course of my life. I recently learned that I have one fewer. The world is poorer for it. Let me tell you a bit about Don Ross.

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